An 82-year-old Democrat asked to be part of 'The Squad' that Trump is railing against - and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez welcomed him

Grace Panetta

Jul 17, 2019, 01:25 IST

An 82-year-old Democrat asked to be part of 'The Squad' that Trump is railing against - and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez welcomed him

AP Photo/Julio Cortez

Rep. Bill Pascrell of New Jersey was accepted into The Squad.

An 82 year-old Democratic lawmaker jokingly asked to be part of a group of young progressive lawmakers known as The Squad - and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York welcomed him with open arms.
The Squad, made up of Ocasio-Cortez, Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, and Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts has been in the spotlight over the past few weeks.
On Tuesday, the satire website The Onion posted a piece titled "82-Year-Old New Jersey Congressman Bill Pascrell Quietly Asks Ilhan Omar If He Can Be Part Of The Squad."
Pascrell re-tweeted the piece wondering, "Well. How bout it?" and tagging the four lawmakers' Twitter handles, leading Ocasio-Cortez to respond, "you're in!"
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An 82 year-old Democratic male congressman jokingly asked to be part of a group of young progressive lawmakers known as The Squad - and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez welcomed him with open arms.

The Squad, made up of Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, and Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts has been in the spotlight over the past few weeks as they've feuded with Democratic house leadership and President Donald Trump.

On Sunday, Trump poured fuel on the simmering tensions between The Squad and leadership with a series of racist early morning tweets telling "progressive congresswomen" of color to "go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came," despite three out of the four being born in the United States.

On Tuesday, the satire website The Onion posted a piece titled "82-Year-Old New Jersey Congressman Bill Pascrell Quietly Asks Ilhan Omar If He Can Be Part Of The Squad."

The humor post read: "Excuse me, Ms. Omar, but I've been paying a good deal of attention to this so-called 'squad' of yours and can't help but think that I might make an exciting addition to join in on the fun," said the Paterson-based octogenarian."

It went on: "I can help with any tweeting you ladies might need. Heck, we might even talk to the other gals and make some sort of viral video together. But enough about me: What do you think? Am I squad material?"

Pascrell re-tweeted The Onion's story wondering, "Well. How bout it?" and tagging the four lawmakers' Twitter handles.

Pascrell, a soft-spoken congressman who generally stays out of the spotlight, has represented northern New Jersey since 1997 and like the members of the Squad, is in a safe Democratic district. Also like The Squad, he serves on an important committee, being a member of the powerful House Ways & Means Committee and the Subcommittee for Trade.

Ocasio-Cortez, Pressley, and Tlaib all serve together on the high-profile House Financial Services Committee, and Omar serves on the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Since Sunday, Trump has doubled down on his attacks on the congresswomen, claiming he doesn't have a racist bone "in his body," and accusing them of being anti-Semitic and "pro-terrorist." On Tuesday afternoon, the House is set to vote on a resolution condemning Trump's tweets as "racist."

Here are all the prominent Republicans who have condemned Trump's racist comments targeting freshman congresswomen

Meet the 'squad' - the Democratic women of color who Trump targeted with racist tweets